2010 is finally here! Hopefully, you decided to avoid the standard New Year's Resolution fiasco, but I'm guessin' you just couldn't resist. After all, we all have some improvements to make in our daily lives, right?

Recently, we focused on one of the biggest resolution issues--weight. We reviewed the common problems associated with diets in general, and why many of the most popular diet plans result in failure. Now, it's time to create a To-Do List for weight management. Surprisingly, this list has already been created for us...

If you want to model yourself after some really successful weight losers, look no further than the National Weight Control Registry (NWCR). The NWCR is a collaborative study between Brown Medical School and the University of Colorado, and is designed to identify the behaviors and habits of people who have successfully lost weight and kept it off. The researchers are tracking over 5,000 individuals who, on average, have lost 66 pounds and kept it off for 5 ½ years. Not bad, huh? These folks have clearly mastered weight loss, but it gets really interesting when you start to look at what they've done to be so successful. Check out some of the statistics below.

• Weight losses have ranged from 30 to 300 lbs.
• Duration of successful weight loss has ranged from 1 year to 66 years.
• Most report continuing to maintain a low calorie, low fat diet.
• Some have lost the weight rapidly, while others have lost weight very slowly--over as many as 14 years.
• 45% of registry participants lost the weight on their own, and the other 55% lost weight with a program.
• 98% of registry participants report that they modified their food intake in some way to lose weight.
• 94% increased their physical activity, with the most frequently reported form of activity being walking.
• 78% eat breakfast every day.
• 75% weigh themselves at least once a week.
• 62% watch less than 10 hours of TV per week.
• 90% exercise, on average, about 1 hour per day.
• 36.2% of registry participants reported weighing themselves at least once per day.

So, it's clear what needs to be done in 2010...

• Follow a low-fat, low calorie diet (or really anything that's healthy and that you can stick to...be flexible on this one).
• Eat breakfast every single day (no flexibility here).
• Be physically active (shoot for 6 days per week and strive to burn 300 calories per day...or more).
• Weigh yourself regularly, so you can catch any weight fluctuations early.
• Cut down on the TV watching (watch your staple programs, but substitute some Wii or other physical activity for some of that lazy time).

Last, but not least--don't forget to adjust your lifestyle to accommodate these newfound goals! Believe me, you'll thank yourself in 2011!